Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, September 27, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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clandestine
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Modal Verbs that Indicate PossibilityBecause modal auxiliary verbs can be quite similar in how they are used, it is sometimes unclear when it's more appropriate to use one instead of another. For instance, we use "may," and "might" to express a possibility. Which of these verbs tends to express less certainty or a lower likelihood? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The DeathstalkerThe deathstalker scorpion stalks the deserts and scrublands of the Middle East and North Africa. Ranging in color from bright green to straw yellow, the deathstalker lives up to its nickname—its venom is a cocktail of neurotoxins that can kill humans, especially those who are very young or old or who have pre-existing medical conditions. Despite the inherent danger, some people keep these deadly creatures as pets. How can the deathstalker's venom be used therapeutically? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Pope Urban VII Dies Just 13 Days into Papacy (1590)Urban VII was chosen to succeed Sixtus V as pope on September 15, 1590. His death from malaria 13 days later made his the shortest papal reign in history. His very short time as pope nevertheless gave rise to the world's first known public smoking ban when he threatened to excommunicate anyone who "took tobacco in the porchway of or inside a church, whether it be by chewing it, smoking it with a pipe, or sniffing it in powdered form through the nose." Who succeeded him? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Sophia Alekseyevna (1657)Sophia Alekseyevna seized power in Russia after the death of her father, Czar Feodor III, and became regent during the minority of her disabled brother, Ivan V, and her half-brother, Peter I. She brutally eliminated her opponents and ruled dictatorially with her lover, Vasily V. Gallitzin. She aspired to be crowned czarina, but lacked support from the nobility and clergy. When it was rumored that she intended to kill Peter to become sole ruler, he overthrew the regency and confined her where? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Oppression of the unfortunate makes one weak.Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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likely story— An exclamation of distrust or disbelief in someone's explanation or story. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Maskal (2024)Maskal is a Christian festival in Ethiopia to commemorate what is believed to have been the finding of the True Cross, the cross on which Christ was crucified. In communities throughout the nation, a tall pole called a demara is set up and topped with a cross. Families place smaller demaras against the big one, and in the evening they are made into a huge bonfire. Religious ceremonies are performed around the bonfire, with songs and dancing. The ashes of the burned-out fire are considered holy, and the people place the powder of the ashes on their foreheads. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: spinacha la Florentine - Means with spinach. More... leaf vegetables - Include cabbage and Romaine lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, endive, and cress. More... rainbow rotelle - A combination of tomato, spinach, and regular twirl-shaped pasta in the colors of the Italian flag. More... spinach - May come from Persian aspanakh/ispanak, perhaps related to the Latin spina, "spine," because of its prickly seeds. More... | |